In my Business 125 class, I had to take the StrengthsFinder assessment, and was assigned my top 5 strengths. My strengths include: Woo, Communication, Positivity, Acheiver, and Includer. When we received our strengths, we were asked to send them to people that knew us well and recieved feedback on how we exemplified those strengths. Below is my reflection on the two strengths I see most in myself: Achiever and Woo.

 

When I saw Achiever in my top strengths, I was not surprised, but I definitely saw it less in myself than I saw my other, more “sparkly” strengths. In contrast, the affirmations I received overwhelmingly singled out my achiever – citing that it was what brings out the drive for my accomplishments in life. Many people cited my goal of attaining National Merit Finalist status, and the hours I put in at a test prep center for that. However, the affirmations that touched me the most brought new takes on achiever I had not yet seen. My stepdad, Joe Morris, had an interesting perspective on the way achiever manifests itself in me. After listing some challenges and experiences he has seen me attempt to tackle, he cited that what struck him most about this strength in me was “[my] willingness to have [my] performance be judged publicly.” His recognition of that, a concept no one else has ever voiced, led me to discover that my openness to critique is in direct correlation to Achiever. This is not to say that I seek approval or recognition for my achievements, but rather I seek things that will garner attention – a reflection of a token of advice from my stepdad gave me my sophomore year of high school: “Find what you want to do, and then ask yourself how you can do that in the biggest way possible.” This exhibited itself when I took my love of running and ran a half marathon, and when I joined our mock trial team as lead attorney and made our goal to advance to state, which we accomplished. Seeing this attribute of my strength defined has reminded me to continue to seek the noblest, most challenging experiences, because those are the experiences that feed my drive, and are ultimately where I deliver my best results.

 

The second affirmation of my Achiever that stood out to me came from a dear friend’s mother, Courtney Pembleton, who has led bible studies for us since elementary school. She, like others, recognized this trait in my academic achievements, but then went on to recognize achiever in a part of my life I hold very near to my heart. She saw Achiever in my drive to overcome my parents’ divorce, “[going] about as close as [one] can to hell on earth & [overcoming] it…with grace and glory”. It was in her affirmation that I finally understood how innate Achiever is in my spirit. I recalled my determination during this period and recognized its manifestation at other difficult times in my life. It is my drive to “rise above,” a constant pull, where Achiever truly exhibits itself – a point outside of “worldly accolades.” Her affirmation did just that – affirm that Achiever, a strength I had previously written off as a way I am able to make good grades, truly is a blessing, and an identification of the tenacity in me during times of adversity.

           

Woo, the trait that I saw most easily in myself, manifested in a way that is a little different than its most obvious definition. Many of the affirmations related to woo cited my warmth when I first meet people, or the presence I have walking into a room, but, again, the affirmations that stood out to me were those that offered a different perspective. My mom’s best friend literally described Winning Others Over when she stated, “When someone does not treat you in a fair way, you do not lash back. Your inclination is to find another way around this reaction.” She went on to describe a lesser recognized facet of Woo when she said she has “never witnessed [me] in just one group.” Before reading her affirmation, I had seen Woo in myself, but I did not realize how easily others saw it in me, or how true the strength really was. Her description of my lack of a single friend group, a source of anxiety for my mother and me throughout school, helped me to realize that this is not a problem, but a gift. I have an affinity for people, and because of that, I love everyone, and because of that, I have many friend groups.

           

My high school English teacher, and also lifelong friend, helped to provide the second affirmation. She recalled a specific conversation that took place between her, a colleague, and myself where I “found interesting points of discussion – specifically [her colleague’s] pedicure.” This conversation took place when I was in elementary school, but my Woo, my desire to make connections with people, helped me find a topic that would help me relate to women forty years my senior. This, along with other, more intellectual conversations, and my ability to relate to others through those conversations, is where my teacher saw my Woo. In reflection, woo is the identification of my love of people and gaining the reciprocation of that love, but it extends beyond that. Woo is also an identification of the drive I seek to relate to people. I have often thought of my parents’ divorce as a blessing, because it enables my story to touch more lives, and therefore makes me more relatable. I now know that this can be attributed to Woo – their divorce, and my experience because of that, serves as another connection I have to more of mankind.

           

After reading these affirmations, not only was I incredibly humbled by what others had to say, but I discovered in order to feel most myself, and to grow, I need to feed my strengths. This realization came to me after writing on Achiever. I see now that I am not fulfilled when I am not achieving something. Whether that achievement is an ‘A’ in a class, or a faster run, I need to maintain a challenging goal and work tenaciously towards it. I was also reminded of the depths of my strengths. Woo, Positivity, Communication and Includer all seemed to me to be social strengths, and because of that, I wrote them, and myself, off. However, in reading the thoughts of people I hold in high esteem, I have realized the gravity of my error. These are not strengths that should be written off, but are who I am. They reflect the passion I have for people, and the drive I have to connect with everyone I meet – worthy pursuits in their eyes, and now in mine.